con·tin·u·um /k?n?tinyo?o?m/Noun · A continuous sequence in which adjacent elements are not perceptibly different from each other, although the extremes are quite distinct.

This detail (taken from a panel by artist Myrna Yoder) hangs in a back corridor at the Kennedy School and depicts a festive gathering outside of the Little Red Shed at McMenamins Edgefield-the old county poor farm in Troutdale, Ore. While it may initially seem out of place at Kennedy, its inclusion is no mistake; rather, it is a conscious expression of the continuum that exists among our places.

For example, one Kennedy student of the '40s later moved to Troutdale, Ore., and attended Christmas functions at the Edgefield poor farm.

Another Kennedy student remembers being delighted by the bell ring­ing performances held at the Swedish Mission Church in Northwest Portland. This former church became our Mission Theater & Pub in 1987.

In yet another illustration of continuum: a Kennedy School student of the late 'teens used to be her dad's tugboat "co-pilot" when he towed a dance barge called Blue Bird up and down the Willamette River. The Blue Bird was the controversial enterprise of the Crystal Ballroom's original proprietor, Montrose Ringler, namesake of Ringlers Puband Ringlers Annex.

These are just a very few examples of the amazing connections we know about and continue to learn about all of the McMenamins properties - stay tuned for future blogging to hear more.

These images of the Crystal Ballroom and the Blue Bird dance barge are courtesy of the Oregon Historical Society.